News

Leinster V Munster Tickets - Players' Draw Results

All paid up players who requested tickets for the semi final were entered in a draw for 10 match tickets. The following names were drawn out -

Tony Blake

Aaron Donnelly

Paddy Fadden

William Fadden

Brian Gately

Niall Hughes

Colm Keane

Luke McCormack

Philip McCormack

Gary Mullen

Clane RFC AGM 2009

CLANE RUGBY CLUB
Annual General Meeting

Clubhouse
Friday 24th April 2009 8pm to 10pm
Everyone welcome

Dinner Dance 2009

CLANE RUGBY CLUB
25th ANNIVERSARY DINNER DANCE
to be held in the
WESTGROVE HOTEL
Saturday 16th May 2009 @ 7.30pm
Tickets cost 65 euros per person.
To include : Champagne Reception, Five course meal, Music til late, Bar Extension to 1.30am
To book your tickets for the social event of the season
Please contact : TONY BLAKE @ 087 - 6856554 or PAUL MORRIN @ 086 - 1934889

This being the 25th Anniversary of the foundation of Clane Rugby Club (1984), we hope to make it a little special with founder members, past presidents, coaches and players ivited to join in celebrations. We also hope to have a photo and memorabilia display along with the unveiling of our Five Year development plan.

Newstalk Towns Cup Semi-Final

Clane face Boyne in the semi-finals of the Newstalk Provincial Towns Cup on Sunday the 29th of March
Kick off : 1.30pm
Location : Donnybrook

Kit Sponsorship 22-Feb-09

Clane RFC would like to extend a warm thanks to The Westgrove Hotel and Fagans Bar & Restaurant for their generous sponsorship of club gear for the Senior teams.

Paddy Fadden representing The Westgrove Hotel and David Fagan representing Fagans Bar & Restaurant were in attendance at Clane's match against Mullingar last Sunday and presented club captain TJ Ryan with club tops.

TJ Ryan and Paddy Fadden

TJ Ryan and David Fagan

Leinster League v Mullingar 22-Feb-09

Clane 26 - 13 Mullingar

Mullingar visited Clane on Sunday for the second last round of the Leinster League in 2009. These two teams met just three weeks ago in the Towns Cup with Clane just edging it in a close encounter so more of the same was expected. The Clane grounds team took advantage of the recent dry spell and had the pitch in perfect conditions for good rugby.

Mullingar kicked off with a slight breeze at their backs but it was Clane who got the better start. Following a pretty lacklustre first five minutes, Clane recorded the first score of the game through a Luke McCormack penalty. This was the result of some excellent work by the in-form Clane backrowers, Niall Brennan and Fergal Corbett. Two more penalties followed soon after through McCormack’s confident boot, leaving the spectators in no doubt with his beautifully flighted kicks.

Mullingar came back into the game and forced a score of their own with a penalty under the posts following a mistimed tackle from a Clane prop. However, Clane increased their lead soon after and registered the first try of the game. A penalty on the half way line was tapped, taking the Mullingar defence by surprise. The ball went through the quick hands of Ronan Murphy at inside centre and when McCormack straightened he made some superb yardage. With a number of defenders moving in on him, he floated a beautiful pass to Anthony Hennessy on the wing, who still had some work to do but showed good upper body strength to force his way over.

Clane took their foot off the peddle following Hennessy’s score and paid the price when Mullingar worked a try of their own just before half time. Mullingar switched the play to both sides of an attacking ruck in the Clane twenty two and the Mullingar first five-eighth slipped through an unorganised Clane defence to leave the score 14-8 at the interval.

Two players from both sides found themselves in the sin bin mainly due to some sloppy high tackling, an infringement the referee was very consistent and fair on. While a Mullingar prop was on a forced break early in the second half, Clane took advantage of five metre scrum and Peter Jackson at number eight controlled the ball well to score just to the right of the posts.

David Watkins was forced to retire with a bleeding nose but his replacement Ronan Murphy was making some strong runs, always turning the Mullingar defence. Mark Kelly on the right wing was consistently making telling tackles and maintained a high work rate. Noel Casey who replaced the lively Corbett in the Clane backrow made a huge impact recording a huge tackle count.

Mullingar didn’t lie and were rewarded with a try following ten minutes of sustained pressure on the Clane try line. The Mullingar kicker struck the cross bar with the very kickable conversion and moving into the final five minutes with the score at 19-13, one try could have snatched it for the visitors.

Tony Blake made sure of a home win with a try in the closing minutes. David Doran made a half break on the right hand side of the field and then released Jackson who in turn off loaded to Blake who scorched under the posts. McCormack added the extras and this left the final score at 26-13.

Clane play their final league match of the season at home to Clondalkin next weekend. Support is always very welcome. Clane 1sts kick off at 3pm with the 2nd team starting at 1.30pm.

Newstalk Provincial Towns Cup v Mullingar 24-Jan-09

Mullingar 0 - 6 Clane

Clane made the trip Westmeath last Saturday to take on Mullingar in the Newstalk Provincial Towns Cup. The home side are currently positioned ahead of Clane in the Leinster League and with home advantage were warm favourites to progress to the next round.

Clane kicked off, playing towards the clubhouse in the first half and the intensity of the game was very high straight away and reflective of all Town cup matches. Sticky underfoot conditions meant stamina would play a big part and both sides were trying to play for field position early on.

Mullingar had the better start and their strong running number eight made space for their backs to threaten out wide. Mullingar’s full back was tackled just short of the Clane line and looked close to grounding the ball; however, the referee didn’t see a grounding and awarded a five metre scrum to the attacking side.

Alan O’Neill at scrum half was organising his forwards well, while Brian Conroy and Peter Jackson were putting in some big tackles. The Mullingar kicker missed three penalties from distance in the opening forty minutes to leave the score at 0 – 0 and Clane were looking forward to the slight wind advantage in the second half.

Clane opened their account five minutes into the second period with a well taken penalty from birthday boy Luke McCormack from a very difficult angle on the right following a Mullingar player entering a ruck from the side. The inside centre added a second penalty soon after to double the Clane lead and this was the final score of the afternoon.

Clane continued to play for territory and Cormac McEvoy at full back cleaned up all balls sent his direction and directed some intelligent kicks in the home side’s half. Gordon Kearney and Niall Hughes were getting through a large amount of tackles and were chasing down everything.

Mullingar never gave up and had a number of opportunities to snatch vicotry. Again, two kickable penalties were just wide. Soon after, a sustained attack on the Clane line required strong defence from the visitors and eventually Clane forced a penalty to clear their lines.

Clane had to ride out a nervous final ten minutes but were delighted to hear the final whistle after dispatching the ball to touch. Clane face New Ross in the next round of the cup on the 8th of February while Clane seconds face Dundalk next Sunday away in the Provincial Seconds Towns Cup. The Clane support in Mullingar was excellent and made a great contribution to the occasion.

Leinster League v Longford 30-Nov-08

Clane 15 - 10 Longford

Clane recorded an important win against a strong Longford side last Sunday in dry but extremely cold conditions at Ballinagappa Rd. Both sides lie in mid table of the Leinster League Div 2 and this was a valuable four points for the home side in what was always going to be a close game.

Clane started in a lively manner and shaded the visitors for dominance in the opening forty minutes. The home defence was outstanding and put a lot of pressure on a bulky Longford backline. Two penalty kicks for goal were the reward for this initial pressure however Luke McCormack was wide with both from tricky angles. Longford also had their opportunities and their second five eighth fancied two kicks of his own from distance but was short with both.

The opening try of the game came through Gordon Kearney, the St Kevin’s man had some work to do to finish off a well worked back move. From a lineout on the half way line, the ball was spun wide the Clane’s second centre, Paul Murphy. Murphy released Anthony Hennessy who fended off his opposite number on the wing, made a 20 yard run and then chipped inside for Kearney to gather and dot down. The conversion was just wide.

Almost immediately after the restart, some strong defence by Dave Watkins and Murphy in the centre forced a speculative pass from Longford. The razor sharp McCormack read it and intercepted from his own ten metre line. He sprinted clear and showed some good toe to score just to the right of the posts and provided an easy conversion for himself to knock over. The half time whistle was blown to leave the score 12 – 0.

Longford came roaring back into the second half and had a sustained period of pressure in the Clane 22. Paul Morrin, Tony Blake and David Doran displayed excellent resistance around the edges of the rucks and Sean Flynn at openside was always in the thick of the action. Longford’s kept their heads and landed a try of their own through their blind side flanker following a number of ‘pick and gos’. This try was converted.

Soon after, Longford came within one score of the home side when they landed a penalty straight in front of the posts. Niall Hughes and Kevin Blake were introduced for Clane to inject some pace into the game up front. There were no more scores in the game following the Longford penalty and the game became frustrating to view with both sides guilty of a number of unforced errors.

Clane were glad to take the spoils and will have a tough away trip to Gorey next Sunday. Meanwhile, Clane seconds recorded a big win over Longford seconds in the first game of the day. Padraig Doherty opened the scoring for the home side and the home side racked up over forty points. Conor Malone led from the front which Mark Lynam, Niall Keena and Niall O’Boyle were excellent for the Clane backs.

Leinster League v Ashbourne 19-Oct-08

Ashbourne 11 - 3 Clane

Ashbourne were hosts to Clane last Sunday in this Leinster League Division 2 fixture. Very strong gales, peppered with light drizzle made conditions difficult for both sides and this resulted in a game which wasn’t pretty to look at.

Ashbourne were deserved winners after eighty minutes of play. Their bigger pack provided a solid scrum to launch attacks from while also disrupting on the Clane put in. The scrum was the difference between the two sides with both teams playing a territory game. Lineouts were essentially a lottery for both teams as the wind made it impossible for accurate throws.

Clane started the game with a wind advantage playing away from the clubhouse, the gust blowing into the bottom left corner. Ashbourne opened the scoring through their number ten with a well struck penalty from just outside the Clane twenty following an offside infringement. Luke McCormack equalised soon after with a penalty of his own following an Ashbourne player not rolling away. Soon after, McCormack missed another penalty chance to the left of the posts and a chance to take the lead, when the wind moved the balled on kicking.

Paul Murphy, Timmy Leacy and Anthony Hennessey had to scramble to stop a break from the Ashbourne No. 8 and again just before half time, some desperate defence kept the home team out. The sides remained tied at half time at 3 points each.

TJ Ryan and Peter Jackson worked hard at the break down for the visitors throughout the second half and Garry Mullen and Brian Conroy kept the tackle count very high, however, Clane found it difficult to get into a rhythm of play. The heavier Ashbourne pack also meant the stable ball for their out half to find good field position.

The only try of the game came through the Asbourne number eight. Following three five metres scrums which were well defended by Clane, the big number eight picked at the base of the fourth scrum and forced his way over near the posts. The try was converted. The Clane set piece was creaking at this stage with hooker Tony Blake taking a ten minute rest in the sin bin just prior to the score.

Ashbourne added another penalty with ten minutes remaining and finished out the game keeping Clane scoreless in the second half. Clane departed disappointed but need to pick themselves up when the league resumes in two weeks time. Earlier in the afternoon, Clane seconds went down 20 – 6 to Ashbourne. Philip McCormack and Tony McLoughlin were to the fore in an uphill battle from the start.

Leinster League v Portarlington 12-Oct-08

Clane 20 – 13 Portarlington

Clane were very happy to achieve their first Leinster League win of the season at home to Portarlington last Sunday following two close defeats in the opening two rounds. These two sides had met previously in the Hosie Cup earlier in September with Clane taking the spoils however; the home side knew Portarlington would pose a much stronger challenge on this occasion.

Portarlington had two opportunities early in the game with two penalty kicks to open the scoring but were short on both occasions. Both kicks were from the ten metre line, in front of the posts with a mild wind behind the visitors. The two teams made a number of handling and kicking errors early on but Clane were the quickest to settle and started to take the upper hand. Luke McCormack and Anto Hennessey were accurate with the boot from long range and began to pin Port in their own twenty two.

TJ Ryan won an attacking lineout and following excellent work close in from Brian Conroy and Richie McNally, Clane prop David Doran came steaming on to the ball from ten yards to touch down just to the right of the posts. Luke McCormack added the conversion and almost straight after the restart added a penalty to make it 10 – 0. This was how it finished at half time.

Porarlington were rewarded for a spell of pressure in Clane territory at the beginning of the second half with a penalty, this time the kick was well struck to open the visitor’s account. Clane responded straight away with a drop goal from Mark Coonan to maintain the ten point cushion.

Gordon Kearney replaced the hard working Kevin Blake on the left wing and soon scored a superb individual try. A dangerous Portarlington attack down the right hand side of the field broke down when Kearney swooped on the broken ball at pace and fended off a number of defenders to touch down. McCormack added the extras from out wide.

With fifteen minutes left on the clock Port’s big second row generated enough momentum from a pop ball off a ruck to force his way over the Clane line to tighten the game. This effort was converted easily.

Clane continued to keep the nose just in front when McCormack added another penalty when Tony Blake forced a penalty with five minutes to go. Both sides desperately pushed for more scores but Port were the last to alter the score board with a penalty at the death to leave the final score 20 – 13.

Clane will be satisfied that they maintained the lead and controlled the game to the end and Portarlington can take consolation in the fact that they secured a losing bonus point. Clane are away to Ashbourne next weekend. All support is very welcome.

Leinster League v Coolmine 05-Oct-08

Coolmine 28 - 24 Clane

Clane travelled to Ashbrook last Sunday to contest the second round of the Leinster League Div 2 with Coolmine. The home side were sitting top of the table following an excellent away win last week and all pundits predicated an easy home win.

Coolmine were extremely quick out of the blocks and immediately set about playing their wide expansive game. Some determined work from Kevin Blake, Timmy Leacy and Luke McCormack just about managed to keep Coolmine's first attack out however, soon after the Coolmine left winger ran in under the posts for the first try of the game. This was a really well worked try following an excellent line by the home full back, by far the best runner on the field. The try was converted and was followed soon after by two penalties.

With a thirteen point deficit Clane needed to get going. Dave Watkins started the Clane revival with a fantastic thirty metre break through the Coolmine midfield. He off loaded to Anto Hennessey who still had a lot of work to do but showed good composure to fend off the defending winger and number eight. McCormack converted and the sides went in to half time at thirteen points to seven to the home side.

Three minutes after the restart, the Coolmine full back struck again from distance with a long weaving run to dot down under the posts. A great individual effort. Clane managed to pick things up again and started to play to their strengths with some good work from the Clane pack. Following some excellent work from a lineout and a strong maul platform, David Doran crashed over the line for a good score. Again, McCormack converted.

The teams seemed evenly matched from this point on and both kickers swapped penalties to leave the gap at six points. As the game moved into the final couple of minutes Clane were camped in the Coolmine twenty two and launched a number of attacks. They were rewarded when Mark Coonan found space behind the on rushing Coolmine defensive line to collect his own kick and touch down just to the left of the posts. McCormack kicked the conversion to leave Clane one point ahead and also the lead for the the first time in the game.

Coolmine restarted and following a number of passages of play the referee offered Coolmine a chance to go back in front with a penalty from the Clane ten metre line straight in front of the posts. The kick was short and McCormack dispatched the ball to touch in the Coolmine half. The home side took a quick throw but this was won by Clane openside, Niall Brennan. Bizarrely, the ball came back on the Coolmine side and from the resulting play, Coolmine worked their way to the bottom corner and the Coolmine out half squeezed over in the corner for the winning score. The ref blew for full time when the conversion was missed from out wide.

Clane are at home to Portarlington next Sunday with the 2nds kicking off at 1.30 and the firsts at 3pm. All support is very welcome.

Leinster League v New Ross 29-Sept-08

Clane 17 - 18 New Ross

New Ross visited Clane last Sunday in the first round of the Leinster League Division 2. Both sides had a successful start to their local area competitions and were both confident of a result. The teams took to field with excellent underfoot conditions and under blue skies.

New Ross were a big team from 1 to 15 and certainly had the upper hand in the opening quarter. On seven minutes, New Ross opened the scoring with a penalty from just outside the Clane twenty two through their out half. Clane took a while to settle into the game and having absorbed more pressure from the visitors, registered their first scored with a penalty from Luke McCormack.

Soon after, Clane scored the first try of the game. A long clearance from the New Ross try line was gathered by Timmy Leacy, who sold an excellent dummy inside and then went on a thirty metre run. Leacy drew the defense and off loaded to local favourite, Hamish Pierre, who in turn shipped to Mark Coonan for an easy run in to the corner. The conversion was just to the left of the posts.

New Ross answered back straight away with a try of the their own through their stand out fly half. Some excellent work by the New Ross pack forced a turn over in Clane territory and from the second phase ball, the number ten forced his way over. Again the conversion was missed.

The half time score was 8 - 8 in this very tight encounter and always looked like it would go down to the wire. McCormack added two quick penalties after half time and New Ross added a nicely taken drop goal, again through their number ten.

New Ross then struck a fatal blow with fifteen minutes left on the clock with a converted try from their strong running openside. A five metre scrum under the Clane posts afforded New Ross the opportunity to launch a well worked back row move and the big openside proved unstoppable from this distance out.

Clane to their credit kept on fighting and reduced the deficit to one point through another McCormack penalty. New Ross then struck the upright from what should have been an easy three points.

New Ross were happy to leave with four points and Clane had to settle for the losing bonus in this see-saw fixture.

In the earlier game, Clane seconds went down to a strong New Ross team, 9 - 29. Mark Lynam had an excellent game in the number ten shirt, scoring all nine points for Clane through penalties. Clane coach, Marty Corbett can take a number of positives from this game and will hope to build on the number of good individual performances to yield results going forward.

Clane are away to Coolmine next Sunday with the 2nds kicking off at 1pm and the firsts at 3pm. All support is very welcome.

U13 Photos

Click here to see some actions shots of the U13s in the RDS plus some Leinster players getting a chance to meet the Clane men.

Clane Under 12’s Strut there Stuff in front of 15,000

Clane Under 12’s rugby team played their first fixture of the season under lights last Friday evening in front of a 15,000 strong crowd in the RDS. Along with Graystones RFC, Clane was invited to play a demonstration match during the half time break of the Leinster v Ospreys match. A traditional part of Leinster Rugby match day, is the half time mini rugby exhibition match between two U12 mini rugby teams who are invited to participate from around the province. The emphasis is on participation and every match provides many entertaining moments for the crowd, while giving young players a memorable experience. Harry Nickels of the North Kildare branch has been instrumental in the sooth running of the scheme

In the end some 100 Clane supporters traveled to see the match in the RDS which turned out to be a huge success. A display of unrivaled rugby entertained the crowed with fast moving ball and solid tackling. Graystones started strongly, a larger pack serving a potentially threatening back line. Clane was driven back into their own twenty-two and were unable to escape for much of the first half. Struggling to clear their line, a nervous period for Clane saw the Graystones batter the Clane defence on multiple occasions but with spectacular tackles from Keith O’Neill and William McDonald Clane’s defence held.

Clane began the fight back, finally gaining some territory, spurred on by the huge work rate of Colin Malone, Donal Mongey and Patrick Morrin in the maul. Alex O’Sullivan at scrum half played with his usual total commitment and provided good quality ball from the breakdowns. Thomas Flanagan came on to the left wing, and the selfless Colm Power powered through the Graystones back line on more than one occasion passing to Thomas but alas failed to score. The teams were well matched in the tight, play that followed and it was in the closing minuets that Graystones broke through Clane’s defense and clinched the upper hand.

Its a splendid start to the season and builds on a very successful season last year which has seen the squad consistently grow in numbers. Coach Paul O’Quiggly commented on the team spirit and comradely that exists in what is a very special Under 12 squad in Clane RFC.

Club Subscriptions Due NOW

Annual subs for 2008/2009 are an inflation busting €120 for the fifth year running.
The first 30 in get a free club drill top and polo shirt, and subs must be paid if you want international tickets.
Student subs are available to all soap dodgers on presentation of a 2007 P60.

Paul Morrin and David Doran are collecting as usual.

Hosie/Lawlor Match Reports v Newbridge 20-Sept-08

Newbridge 10 - 15 Clane

Newbridge and Clane met in their final Hosie Cup group match last Thursday night at Cill Dara RFC with Clane taking the points and winning the pool outright. This fixture was a replay following the initial match last Sunday in Newbridge which was abandoned due to an injury to the referee.

The Cill Dara pitch was in excellent condition however a light drizzle started right on kick off and this put increased the importance of field position for the encounter. The Clane pack started in a strong fashion in both set pieces and in the loose and maintained their work rate through the evening to apply pressure in Newbridge territory. TJ Ryan, celebrating his 30th birthday, and Brian Conroy were excellent at the breakdown.

Two early penalties were won as a result and Luke McCormack, having missed his first attempt, regained his composure to land the second. John McNamara converted a penalty for Newbridge to level the scores soon after following an infringement for holding on to the ball on the ground.

Sean Flynn and Garry Mullen departed for Clane due to injury and were replaced by Fergal Corbett and Kevin Blake who both maintained a balance to the forward play. Mark Coonan added a drop goal just before half time to leave the score 6 - 3 and shortly after the restart, added a second on 60mins.

Clane took advantage of the wind conditions in the second half to pin Newbridge in their own half, with scrum half, Alan O'Neill contributing some excellent box kicks.

McCormack added two additional penalties and McNamara missed another to leave the score 15 - 3 for most of the second half. Both sides emptied their benches in the hope of finishing out the game stronger. With one minute left on the clock, Newbridge's replacement scrum-half, Dave Hogan scored a fine individual try under the posts to leave the final score 15 - 10 in clane's favour.

Both sides begin their Leinster League campaigns in the coming weeks and will hope to build on their experiences in the Hosie Cup.

Newbridge 42 - 0 Clane

Clane 2nds took on a much more experienced Newbridge side in the Lawlor Cup in Rosetown Sunday week ago and the score line reflects the dominance Newbridge had.

Clane had a number of players who playing their first match of the season but there was enough to suggest a small amount of organisation should remedy this.

Clane RFC Annual Golf Classic

Knockanally Golf Club, Fri Oct 10th, 2008.



Shotgun Start @ 1pm.
Four Person Team Scramble.
350 Euros per Team including meal.
Prize giving and live music featuring Mick Dunne in Jas Manzors "The Village Inn" at 8pm.
Hole sponsorship most welcome. (100 Euros)
Please contact Michael Kehoe 086 1011851
or Paul Morrin 086 1934889.

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